The key moment in President Trump’s State of the Union address came when he trapped Democrats with a ‘gotcha’ question in front of tens of millions of watching Americans.
‘If you agree with this statement then stand up and show your support,’ he said. ‘The first duty of the American government is to protect American citizens…not illegal aliens.’
There was uproar in the chamber as Trump delivered the line part way through his marathon speech. Republicans gave him the biggest applause of the night, standing and clapping for nearly two minutes, as Democrats remained stubbornly in their seats.
The president shook his head and stared at them in disbelief.
‘Isn’t that a shame, you should be ashamed of yourselves for not standing up,’ he said eventually. Then he yelled: ‘You should be ashamed!’
Ilhan Omar, the Democratic congresswoman from Minnesota, was glued to her seat, refusing to rise. Instead, she jabbed her finger, screaming incoherently at the president, close to tears. Mark Kelly, the Democratic senator from Arizona, slumped in his chair staring into space. Other Democrats bowed their heads or avoided the president’s gaze.
It was the most high-octane of a series of unscripted outbursts in which Trump unleashed his wrath on political opponents in a ferocious 108-minute tirade.
President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress in the House chamber at the U.S. Capitol in Washington, Tuesday, Feb. 24, 2026
In perhaps the angriest of all his speeches he repeatedly tore into Democrats, going on to declare that ‘these people are crazy!’ and calling them ‘sick.’
Later, he lambasted them again for not standing to honor those murdered by illegal immigrants.
Democrats remained in their seats once more as Trump pledged justice for Iryna Zarutska, a 23-year-old Ukrainian refugee who was fatally stabbed on a North Carolina commuter train last August.
As her mother wept in the gallery, Trump scolded Democrats: ‘Why are you not standing? How do you not stand?’
There is a long tradition of opposition parties staying seated during a president’s State of the Union address as a form of silent protest.
Trump, a former reality TV star and producer, knew that and used it to make Democrats look, in the eyes of many viewers, callous. It was theater, but it was effective.
Before his speech there had been much discussion among Democrats about whether they would appear unpatriotic if they did not stand to applaud an anticipated appearance by Team USA’s victorious Olympic ice hockey team.
In the end, they did rise when Trump announced he would give the Medal of Freedom to goalkeeper Connor Hellebuyck.
President Trump spoke for 108 minutes and launched a series of attacks on Democrats
Chief Justice John G. Roberts Jr., Justice Elena Kagan, Justice Neil Gorsuch and Justice Amy Coney Barrett at Trump’s speech
Divisions were similarly set aside when the Congressional Medal of Honor was awarded to Army Chief Warrant Officer Eric Slover, a helicopter pilot wounded in the raid that captured Venezuela’s Nicolás Maduro.
‘Even as he was gushing blood, which was flowing back down the aisle, the helicopter lands at a steep angle,’ Trump recounted in a dramatic and graphic description of the Maduro operation.
‘Eric maneuvered his helicopter with all of those lives and souls to face the enemy and let his gunners eliminate the threat, saving the lives of his fellow warriors.’
Amid the drama there were also tributes to a 100-year-old former fighter pilot, retired Navy Captain E Royce Williams, and Erika Kirk, the widow of assassinated conservative activist Charlie Kirk.
A potential flashpoint passed without serious incident when Trump addressed a recent Supreme Court ruling that declared illegal his global tariffs, a cornerstone of his economic vision.
Only three of the six justices who voted to knock down his tariff policy braved turning up, including Amy Coney Barrett, who was nominated to the court by Trump.
As the justices sat in the front row they appeared to be awaiting the president’s displeasure like schoolchildren outside the principal’s office.
Ultimately, having gone nuclear on Democrats, Trump instead limited himself to calling it an ‘unfortunate ruling,’ but there was an unmistakable air of menace in his voice.
Representative Ilhan Omar, Democrat of Minnesota, heckles the president after refusing his request to stand up
Ivanka Trump and Barron Trump react as the State of the Union
In all, Trump was ringmaster for one hour and 48 minutes, a record length for a State of the Union address, and the most notable moments – including some of his kamikaze attacks on Democrats – came when he abandoned his teleprompter.
But at the heart of his performance was a speech carefully crafted to capitalize on what was expected to be his biggest TV audience of the year, with an estimated 40 million viewers.
Trump had entered the chamber for the first official State of the Union address of his second term at a particularly perilous time for his administration and the world.
The president’s back is to the wall with his approval rating near an all-time low, many voters frustrated by the cost of living, and some of his own supporters getting restless.
Republicans face a potential stake to the heart in the midterm elections in November, which could see them lose control of the House just as 2018’s blue wave led to a block in Trump’s first administration.
The honeymoon after his 2024 triumph seems long over.
As always when backed into a corner, Trump came out swinging and attempted to verbally batter his detractors into submission.
Behind the scenes, he has been frustrated because he believes his achievements are not being communicated well enough to the public at large, resulting in bad polls.
He believes there is no one better than himself to deliver his message, and the State of the Union gives him the perfect opportunity to do so.
The aim of his carefully crafted speech was to reclaim the mantle on two major issues that propelled him to victory in 2024, which have since become liabilities – the economy and immigration.
A CNN poll released on the eve of his address showed 65 percent of Americans now disapprove of his handling of inflation, and 58 percent disapprove on immigration, making them the areas in which he is now most unpopular. It has been a stunning reversal for the president.
Army Chief Warrant Officer Eric Slover receives the Medal of Honor at the State of the Union
First lady Melania Trump presents the Congressional Medal of Honor to World War II Navy pilot Capt. Royce Williams
In response, Trump reeled off his achievements on immigration – the ‘most secure border in history,’ ‘zero illegal aliens admitted,’ slashing fentanyl coming in to the country, a murder rate at the lowest in over 100 years.
On the economy, he touted the lowest inflation in five years, gas averaging $2.30 a gallon, the price of eggs down 60 per cent, the lowest mortgage rates in four years, and $18 trillion inward investment secured.
Natural gas production was at all-time high, 2.4 million Americans had been removed from food stamps, prescription drug prices have plummeted, workers are benefiting from no tax on tips or overtime, and families from new Trump accounts for children, the president reported.
Blaming the ‘affordability’ crisis on Democrats, he pointed at them angrily and said: ‘You caused that problem! We are doing really well, those prices are plummeting downward. Hold on a little while, we’re getting it down.’
His first year had seen an economic ‘turnaround for the ages’ that had made America the ‘hottest country,’ and ushered in a ‘golden age,’ he said.
‘The roaring economy is roaring like never before,’ he added.
As evidence, above all, he touted the Dow hitting 50,000 for the first time.
However, many Americans, especially those who do not own stocks, clearly do not feel the same way.
Members of the United States’ Olympic hockey team attend President Donald Trump’s State of the Union address
Erika Kirk, the widow of slain conservative activist Charlie Kirk, was President Donald Trump’s special guest
Growth is lagging behind expectations, interest rates remain stubbornly high, and household budgets across America are straining.
Prices for groceries, housing, insurance and utilities remain significantly higher than they were a few years ago.
And new figures released on Friday showed the economy slowed more than expected last quarter while inflation accelerated.
Trump’s speech was partly a test run for the economic message Republicans around the country will run on in the midterms in November, seeking to assuage voters’ concerns about the cost of living.
‘His job, for the sake of his party, is to show the silver lining,’ Jeff Shesol, a former speechwriter for Democratic President Bill Clinton, said. ‘But if he’s going to insist that the silver lining is gold, no one’s buying it. And it will be a very difficult position on the campaign trail for Republicans to defend.
‘Trump has always believed, going back to his real estate days, that he can sell anyone on anything. He’s still doing that. But the problem is, you can’t tell somebody who has lost their job and can’t get a new one that things are going great.’
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries had warned Democrats to display ‘decorum’ and not to make any ‘unforced errors,’ but some could not contain themselves.
Democratic Texas congressman Al Green was ejected for the second year in a row.
In another wild scene he was ushered out after brandishing a sign reading ‘Black people aren’t apes!’ – a response to a video released by a staffer on Trump’s Truth Social account which depicted former President Barack Obama and former first lady Michelle Obama as apes.
As Green he was thrown out, a Republican member of Congress tried to rip away his sign.
Meanwhile, members of the House Democratic Women’s Caucus and their guests, including survivors of Jeffrey Epstein’s sexual abuse, wore white in protest. Trump made no mention of the Epstein files during his speech.
In a capital riven by partisan divisiveness, more than 40 Democrats skipped the event entirely to attend rival events, including a rally on the National Mall.
Amid the chaos, Democrats also ended up having three separate responses to Trump’s address.
There was an official one by Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger, a Spanish-language one, and a progressive one – a move that may leave voters questioning if the party has a coherent alternative message.
President Donald Trump delivers the State of the Union address
Virginia Governor Abigail Spanberger delivers the Democratic response
The choice of Spanberger was a clear sign that the cost of living will be central to the Democratic midterm campaign.
She sailed to an unexpectedly easy double-digit victory in Virginia last November by focusing on that issue.
Like his first year in office, Trump spent much of the speech on foreign policy. In particular, he lauded the audacious capture of Maduro, and the brokering of a ceasefire in Israel’s war with Hamas.
He is far from the first president to campaign on a domestic agenda and then become heavily embroiled in foreign affairs in office, but polls show some supporters are becoming vexed by the change in focus.
As Trump spoke, two US aircraft carriers are loitering near Iran amid the build up of the largest American military presence in the Middle East since the Iraq invasion.
Polls show many voters want him to spend his time on other issues.
The CNN survey showed only 82 percent of Republicans now approve of his performance compared to 90 percent a year ago.
However, his speech, with its aggressive attacks on Democrats and justifications of his economic record, appeared to have resonated with supporters.
Patrick McHenry, the Republican former North Carolina congressman, said: ‘He nailed the Republican base and brought them back in the fold with a solid message on the economy.’
